Andray Blatche Already Unhappy With His Role in the Wizards’ Offense

The Andray Blatche Experience is off to a terrific start in Washington, as Blatche blew up when talking to the press (and on Twitter) following the Wizards’ season-opening loss to the New Jersey Nets. Per the Washington Examiner: “Wizards head coach Flip Saunders was asked if it was a lack of trust. He framed it differently. ‘Is it trust, or is it, ‘I think that I can make a play to get us going again,’ and you try to do it individually,’ Wizards head coach Flip Saunders said. ‘In our league, you can’t do it, unless you’re one of the elite players. We don’t have anyone that’s at that elite status right now like a Deron Williams, that can just take the game over, that can just take the game over whether he’s scoring, passing, setting people up.’ Blatche, who finished with 11 points – only one in the fourth quarter – along with nine rebounds, three assists, two blocks and a pair of turnovers, said Saunders must’ve meant that comment to be about him. ‘He probably was talking about me,’ Blatche said. ‘Because for the simple fact that I said that I need the ball in the paint to be effective. You can’t keep having me pick-and-pop, and shooting jump shots. Give me the ball in the paint. That’s where I’m most effective at. I’ve been saying that since training camp: I need the ball in the paint. I don’t want to be the pick-and-pop guy that I used to be. It’s not working for me. The double-team came, I kicked it out, we made good plays. I’m not saying the offense has to run through me, but I prefer to be in the paint.’ Blatche was asked further about the Wizards’ strategy down the stretch. ‘The plays we were running, it was our typical plays,’ Blatche said. ‘But in a situation like this we need to make them pay by throwing it down to me. If they’re going to double-team me, let me kick it out and we swing it around and somebody get an open 3. It’s all about rotation and getting open shots, not making it hard on ourselves.'”